Inside Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich (screenshots)

Thanks to Android 4.0's newfound ability to take screenshots, we can bring you the inside look at Google's enormous Ice Cream Sandwich effort.

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Hands-on with Ice Cream Sandwich

Google's latest operating system is nothing short of overwhelming, once you take in changes large and small. Debuting with the Samsung Galaxy Nexus, we used the new built-in screenshots feature to walk you through some of the more prominent additions and enhancements. There are many more that you'll discover in these photos, and others that we've also explored in the full review.

Hail to Honeycomb

Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS for short), splices Honeycomb with redesigned elements that are familiar to Android's smartphone users, like this navigation control to pull up most recently accessed programs. (Read the full
Samsung Galaxy Nexus review.)

Notification bar

Google's redesigned notification bar is gorgeous and sleek. You wouldn't know by looking at it, but you can use gestures to swipe away alerts when you're done. (Read the full
Samsung Galaxy Nexus review.)

Apps and widgets

The app tray resembles the old, with the exception of a few details, like the horizontal rather than vertical sliding, some graphical transitions, and the addition of a new content type to drag to the home screens: widgets. (Read the full
Samsung Galaxy Nexus review.)

Unlock

Stick your face in front to set it up, and also to unlock. Yes, a photo will unlock it too, or your doppelganger, so other measures are better for your actual security from peeping eyes. (Read the full
Samsung Galaxy Nexus review.)

Android Beam

You'll use Beam, which relies on the radio frequency standard NFC, to share things like maps, contacts, and an app page in the Android Market (for instance, use Beam to "share" a game or app). NFC and Android Beam both need to be enabled. Find them in the Wi-Fi settings menu under "More".) (Read the full
Samsung Galaxy Nexus review.)